High-power Yb-doped multicore ribbon fiber laser

A highly elongated double-clad ribbon fiber that comprises a pure-silica inner cladding with transverse dimensions of similar to 1.4 mm by 0.23 mm with a linear array of ten ytterbium-doped cores has been fabricated and operated in a simple laser configuration pumped by two diode stacks. The fiber laser yielded 320 W of output power at a center wavelength of 1045 nm in a combined beam with beam propagation factors of similar to 2 (perpendicular to the array) and similar to 150 (parallel to the array) for 576 W of launched pump power. The slope efficiency with respect to absorbed pump power was 62%. The prospects for further power scaling and improved beam quality and efficiency are discussed. (c) 2005 Optical Society of America.